When is a Resturant a Resturant?

Moneybox

Have an issue currently with a high street shop. Decided to buy drinks and cakes as an excuse for a break and toilet stop when shopping with family.

Drinks and cakes ordered we discovered there wer NO toilet facilities!!

We ended up finishing our drinks and food and then had to go to a 2nd high street store to use the toilets.

I have written to the shop head office as I understood legally a resturant needs to provide toilets. The response was they did not as it was not a resturant. HOWEVER they sell Sandwiches, Cakes and Drinks!!

SO when is a resturant not a resturant? Would like some info as I would like to follow this up with the company as I do not feel their response was satisfactory.

Thankyou!

OnceUponADream

I'm not sure if legally restaurants/cafes have to have loos but I suspect most do. Was this a cafe within say like a department store - was there not loos available within the actual store?

Ladyra

As far as I'm aware a place that sells food is only legally required to have toilets if they have a seating area. My father helped build a cafe (over 8 years ago now) but im sure i remember him telling me something along those lines.

Moneybox

yes it was a national department store.
No toilets in the shop.

and Yes there was a large seating area with tables!!

I am amazed if this is allowed. No where to even wash you hands before eating the cakes we ordered!

I am totally puzzled as to when a cafe is a cafe and when it is classed as a resturant etc. I don't mind paying over the odds for food or drinks when a service is provided which usually includes toilets!! If we had realised this earlier we would not have bought the drinks or cakes.

There was no table service as you ordered at the till and took the cakes and drinks to your table. Maybe this effects its clasification as a resturant?

TIME2GROWUP_2

Complicated legislation involving when the premises was built/opened, seating capacity etc would decide if it legally needed toilets for public use. Never assume.. always check first, personally i'd have headed for the local m & s or supermarket.. they usual have the facilities you need without purchasing food and drink.

baddiebasher

My understanding is that the do not have to provide toilet facilities unless serving alcohol after a certain time or if the building was built after such a date or has planning aplication under such a regulation.

I'd just (try) and find a public loo or run into a pub.

There's the shared toilet scheme coming into play soon which will hopefully stop the "toilets for customers use only" malarky.

moonrakerz

Moneybox wrote: »

SO when is a resturant not a resturant? Would like some info as I would like to follow this up with the company as I do not feel their response was satisfactory.

Sounds more like a caff than a restaurant !

My local "layby restaurant" has a couple of bushes

Pretani

a very interesting topic Moneybox, I'm sure the disability section would be interested to hear about this too.

foxxymynx

If a restaurant serves alcohol or is open after 10.30pm, it must provide toilets for it's customers. I'm not sure on what the legal definations are between cafe and restaurant.

bmth123

As I understand it, it is decided locally and, as an earlier poster commented, may depend on when the premises was built etc. The people who deal with this in food premises is Environmental Health. For example http://www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/business/health_safety/faq.htm has a question and answer on this point relating to premises within Wolverhampton, Darlington http://www.darlington.gov.uk/Environment/Food+Production+and+Quality/Food+Safety.htm#tfcirac
has a similar question.
I guess the best bet is contact the Environmental Health Department for the area where the premises is located. At the very least, by contacting them, queries like this show the publics concerns and help to establish future priorities.

baddiebasher

Pretani wrote: »

a very interesting topic Moneybox, I'm sure the disability section would be interested to hear about this too.

I have dealt with a few issues on this and some comments that irked me a bit.

Firstly, the DDA does not require that a venue provides toilets for disabled people. It merely provides that, where a facility is provided, it should be accessible for the disabled as well.

It does NOT mean that somewhere must have a disabled toilet but need not provide toilets for anyone else.

Equality is not having something that no-one else has. and that phrase was used by a disabled friend of mine who is equally irked by the "I'm disabled due to the huge chip on my shoulder and you're damned well gonna know about it" brigade.